


A Wizard (and his Niffler) for Christmas

by Aki (Akiko_Natsuko)



Category: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (Movies)
Genre: Christmas, Christmas Fluff, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Friendship/Love, Long-Distance Friendship, Long-Distance Relationship, Missing You, Reunions, Secrets, Sibling Love, Surprises
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-06
Updated: 2018-11-06
Packaged: 2019-08-19 19:19:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,390
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16540583
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Akiko_Natsuko/pseuds/Aki
Summary: New York was beautiful in winter, snow already lying thick on the ground and the streets strewn with festive decorations and normally Tina would have been unable to name anywhere she wanted to be more at this time of year. However, this year was different. She was different, and her thoughts weren’t on the decorations that they were trying to put up, or the Christmas shopping that she still had to do, but rather with Newt. Where was he now?Tina shares her doubts with her sister when Newt seems to have dropped off the map, unaware that Queenie has secrets of her own and that they are to do with her wayward Wizard.





	A Wizard (and his Niffler) for Christmas

    New York was beautiful in winter, snow already lying thick on the ground and the streets strewn with festive decorations and normally Tina would have been unable to name anywhere she wanted to be more at this time of year. However, this year was different. She was different, and her thoughts weren’t on the decorations that they were trying to put up, or the Christmas shopping that she still had to do, but rather with Newt. Where was he now? The last time she had heard from him he had been travelling around and giving talks on his book, trying to convert more people to his view on magical creatures and he hadn’t seemed to know where he was going to be for Christmas. She’d wanted to invite him, or maybe even go to see him, after all it had been months since he had payed a flying visit to nervously place a copy of his book in her hands, but she knew how important this tour of lectures was to him and she hadn’t wanted to pull him away from that.

    Now, she wished that she had asked, because it had been a few weeks since she had heard from him, the longest period without contact since he’d been bedridden after an allergic reaction to a magical plant he’d been gathering for his creatures. At least that time, his mother had sent her a note to explain that it would be a while before he was steady enough to write her and whilst she had still worried, it wasn’t the same creeping doubt and uncertainty that she had been feeling the last couple of days. Feelings that only seemed to grow with each day that passed without sight of a letter from him. Had something happened? Or had he moved on? Forgotten her….?

“You’re thinking about him again,” Tina was pulled out of her thoughts, realising that she had been stood there staring at the garland in her hands for longer than she had intended, and she blushed before glancing across at her sister. Queenie was still working away, wand dancing gracefully through the air as she weaved the tinsel around the tree, but her eyes were fixed on Tina, and there was the knowing look in her eyes that meant she had caught at least some of Tina’s thoughts.

“Queenie…”

“You can’t blame me when your thoughts are loud enough to be heard in Arizona,” Queenie retorted, but there was no heat in the exchange. “You’re usually a lot better at shielding them.” There was a hint of worry in those words. Having accepted a long time ago that Queenie only a limited control over her powers and not wanting to risk them coming between them, Tina had thrown herself into studying occlumency, and whilst it wasn’t enough to keep her sister out, it muffled her thoughts, with only the loudest ones being easily accessible. It became harder to guard her thoughts though when her emotions were running high, like when Queenie had her desperate cries when she had been sentenced to death, and apparently now when she was worrying about Newt.

“It’s n…” Tina began, but she couldn’t finish the lie, not under Queenie’s sharp gaze and not with the worry still gnawing at her. “Newt hasn’t responded to my last letter.”

“It’s because you keeping using Owl Post,” Queenie muttered, turning her attention back to the tree, carefully levitating the everlasting candles into place with a flick of her wand as she added wryly. “The poor bird probably got lost again, especially with how much he moves around.” Tina longed to believe that was the case, remembering the number of times Newt had forgotten to tell her he was off to the middle of nowhere, leading to exhausted Owls who had no idea where they were supposed to be going. However, she knew that wasn’t the case this time and she shook her head, catching her sister’s attention.    “Tina?”

“I charmed the letter,” Tina admitted, colouring further when Queenie arched an eyebrow at the admission and she hurriedly continued. “So that I would know if that happened again, and it activated nearly three weeks ago to tell me he had received it.” There was no way she was going to admit that it was also for her own piece of mind, because the charm would only activate when the letter when it was in his hands, letting her know that at that moment at least he was safe. She waited for Queenie to call her on it, finding the garland in her arms fascinating, especially when she heard her sister sigh.

“You know what Newt’s like when he’s playing with his creatures.” Tina almost smiled at that, lips quivering as she imagined what Newt’s reaction would be to that statement. He would probably puff up like his Nundu. “He forgets about the rest of the world. I’m sure that you’ll hear from him as soon as someone drags his head out that suitcase of his.”

“I know.” She did know, having experienced that phenomenon herself and hearing him complain multiple times about being disturbed when he was working with his creatures. However, the brief flicker of amusement faded, and she sighed, shoulders sinking. “But’s he’s never forgotten to reply before. What if…?” _What if he’s moved on? Found someone else? Gone back to her…_ She didn’t like those thoughts, and normally she managed to keep them at bay even with the distance between them, but tonight they seemed to have crept in through the cracks.

“Tina.” It had been a long time since she had heard her sister sound so stern, and she couldn’t help but lift her head to meet Queenie’s gaze, knowing that she must have caught her wandering thoughts to sound like that.  “Don’t even think that. You know Newt, he’s not that kind of person.”

“I know.” _I know._ Newt was many things, most of them strange, but he was also honest to a fault, sometimes to the point of bluntness or awkwardness. It didn’t silence her doubts and uncertainties, only a letter, filled with his messy writing and wild tales would do that, but somehow hearing Queenie voice it aloud helped, and she took a deep breath and straightened. “I know,” she repeated, even managing a small smile. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome,” Queenie smiled back, the sternness gone. “Let’s get this finished and then I’ll make some hot cocoa and tell you all the latest gossip.” It was a blatant distraction technique, but right now that sounded like heaven to Tina and she set the garland she had been toying with back on the table.

“I’ll make it,” she offered. “You have a better eye for this.”

“Fine,” Queenie agreed, eyes sparkling as she glanced at the rest of the decorations waiting to go up, before she frowned and glanced at Tina.  “But if I hear you moping again then I will hit you with a cheering charm until I have you laughing until you cry…again.”

“Witch’s honour!” Tina swore, knowing that it wasn’t an empty threat although at least time they were in the privacy of their home and not at a work party where her spell-induced laughter had drawn a lot of attention.  The smile she got in response was pure mischief and she swallowed before bustling across to the stove, deliberately trying to think about as many happy things as possible and project them at Queenie to ward of the charm, trying not to notice just how many of those happy thoughts seemed to involve Newt in some capacity.

*

     Queenie waited until she was sure that Tina was engrossed with making the cocoa, taking a second to check that her sister’s thoughts hadn’t ventured to darker territories again before she moved. Under the pretence of stringing the garlands across the wall, she made her way across to where she had left her bag, leaving the garlands hanging themselves as she ducked down to rummage through it, keeping half an eye on her sister as she finally found the notebook she was looking for. Checking on Tina again, she gently pulled out the piece of charmed parchment tucked in the front of the book and opened it, praying that there would be a message, lips quirking up in a smile as messy writing appeared in front of her eyes, responding to her touch.

_I’ll be there on the 23 rd._

    The message flashed green and then red, before vanishing as though it had never been there, and she hastily tucked the parchment away. She would need to warn Newt about her sister’s worried, but that would have to wait until Tina wasn’t bustling around behind her, and hearing mugs being set on the counter she hastily rose and turned her attention back to the decorations. And by the time that Tina called to say that the cocoa was made, she had the rest of the decorations up, taking in the festive scene with a smile. It was going to be a good Christmas, she could feel it in her bones as she moved to join Tina at the table, pleased to see her sister was looking brighter, and looking forward to seeing how she would react to her surprise.

****

     Tina was in no hurry as she climbed the stairs to their flat, exhausted after a long day at work, as it seemed that many witches and wizards seemed to lose their common sense at this time of year. She had lost count of the number of drunken people telling the No- Maj’s all about magic and the wizarding world, and the displays of magical fireworks that had been making headlines the last few days. It almost made her long to be back doing wand registrations…almost. What made it worse was that Christmas was just two days away now, and she still hadn’t heard from Newt. She had tried to hold onto Queenie’s words and her promise to stay cheerful, but it was hard, especially when she knew that her sister had been sneaking off to see Jacob again.

    She couldn’t envy Queenie though, knowing that sooner or later the tentative relationship she was building with Jacob who still had no recollection of their first meeting or that Queenie was a witch, was going to run into trouble. Neither of them had talked about it, and Tina had elected to turn a blind eye to it when Queenie would come back with a wide smile on her face and pastries shaped like Nifflers and Erumphants.

Still, it made her miss Newt even more and…

    She had reached the top floor, and her hand immediately darted to where she kept her wand concealed as she took in the front door which was sat ajar even though she knew it had been locked when she had left, and that Queenie, as absent minded as she could be would never have left it open. Flicking out her wand and taking a deep breath, telling herself it couldn’t be any more terrifying than what they had encountered with Creedence and Grindelwald she stepped forward, steps light. She was just reaching for the door when there was a loud crash from within and her eyes widened as she heard a familiar voice lifting in frustration.

“You pilfering pest, can’t you behave just for one day?!” There was another crash and the sounds of something breaking, and Tina knew that she should be worried about their belongings or what would happen if her landlady came up to investigate, but right now she couldn’t focus on anything but the fact that she knew that voice.

_It can’t be, it can’t be him…_

She didn’t want to move forward and have her hopes come crashing down, but then the voice rang out again. “Let it go! That isn’t for you!” There was no mistaking it. She would know that voice anywhere, especially when it carried that particular mix of irritation and fondness and finding her courage she moved forward, nudging the door open, heart hammering in her chest as it swung open.

     There, sprawled in the middle of her living room with his hands wrapped around the Niffler who was curled protectively around what looked to be present, snuffling and grumbling as it struggled to escape, was Newt. His hair had grown a little, looking messier than ever although that could have been from his efforts to catch the Niffler as she spied the chair laying on its side, and his case, thankfully closed which had been knocked onto its side.

“Newt…” His head shot up at the quiet whisper, and he looked torn between being happy to see her and embarrassment as his gaze darted over the havoc he had already caused. It was so like him that she couldn’t stop the laugh that bubbled up. _It’s really him…_

“Surprise,” Newt replied, as beautifully awkward as she remembered, his grip tightening on the Niffler despite its protests before he scrambled to his feet. “I’m sorry that I didn’t reply to your last letter, I wanted to surprise you…” Tina blinked at that, having forgotten about her worries and doubts over his silence in her joy at realising it was actually him. “Queenie said…”

    Tina hadn’t missed her sister’s name, and the fact that she had clearly been in on this from the start, but she didn’t pay it any heed as she darted across the room. Newt letting out a startled squawk as she slammed into him, wrapping him up in a tight hug and Merlin, he was wonderfully solid and warm in her arms. She was vaguely aware of the Niffler scrambling to freedom and she knew that she would probably live to regret not immediately catching him, especially as she heard wrapping paper being shredded behind them, but right now it was hard to focus on anything but the fact that Newt was there in her arms and that his arms were shyly coming up to return the hug.

“Merry Christmas,” he murmured after a moment, the slight shake in his voice telling her that he was just as overwhelmed by the situation and she smiled, leaning back to peer up at him as she found her voice once more.

“It is now.”

 


End file.
